A number of recent acquisitions, new hires, patents and expansions confirm vinyl floorings strength in the marketplace and could contribute to increases in 2013.

On March 5, 2012, New Jersey-based Mannington Mills acquired Amtico International and began diligently working to shift production of its luxury vinyl tile (LVT) portfolio to Amtico’s ISO-certified facility in Georgia. The move will dramatically reduce lead times while increasing Mannington’s quality control and domestic footprint, according to David Sheehan, vice president of resilient business, Mannington.

“Working together, Mannington and Amtico are growing their understanding of LVT,” said Sheehan. “We’re bringing more of our Asian production of LVT to North America and integrating our capabilities. Amtico’s facilities are state-of-the-art and will have a huge impact on our LVT business going forward.”
Meanwhile, Congoleum’s board of directors replaced longtime president and CEO Roger Marcus with Bob Moran on Feb. 24. Since taking the helm of the company, Moran has increased sales by “high single digits” and hired veteran designer Dotty Horn. In addition, Congoleum will expand its DuraCeramic collection with new sizes and commercial introductions at Surfaces 2013. It recently launched AirStep Advantage, a thicker 110-mil version of its floating alternative sheet flooring.

“Bob Moran has really stepped up and is positioning Congoleum to take back its leadership position,” said Bill Morrissey, CEO of Michigan-based Bishop Distributing. “Congoleum has some new introductions coming out that are going to amaze the marketplace next year.”
In October, FreeFit received U.S. patent No. 8,298,650 covering the loose lay format of LVT that it introduced in 2010. Though FreeFit has not aggressively enforced its patent, that may change in 2013, according to president and CEO Dave Reichwein.
“We’ve been letting competitors help build the market but we have the intellectual property to provide our distributor and retail partners with legal protection when we decide to act,” he said.

These investments in facilities, high-level personnel and intellectual property bode well for the entire category, according to Michael Lang, senior marketing manager, Karndean Designflooring, which recently opened a new 54,000 square-foot distribution/showroom just outside of Dallas.

“Vinyl flooring has evolved to the point where commercial specifiers, retail store owners and consumers understand it’s a different category today,” said Lang. “That level of awareness allows us to take LVT to the next level and communicate the added value of our highly-customizable product. All the innovation and investments going on are good for the category but also good for us. We have unique floors and all the excitement only makes it easier to communicate that message.”